Fun Friday

Just a little break from my own hard research & travels to share with you some more FUN FRIDAY links:

FINDING FAMILY STORIES: If you have not already been to her blog, & you like a good story… I HIGHLY recommend Tami’s site: Finding Family Stories.

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading her ancestors stories. Actually, no lie… I envy her ability to find so much great information & piece it all together in a compelling story you just have to read… & finish :D

I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to give kudos to such a wonderful researcher & family historian. Thanks Tami for sharing your family history & your talents :D

 

REMEMBERANCE STONES – A friend of mine recently had brought me into the light of leaving stones are graves of her loved ones. Even when she is unable to go visit the resting place of her loved ones, she will still find a unique stone that makes her think of them & mail it home to a family member so it can still be placed on their monument in her absence.

It’s said amongst some to be a Jewish tradition. Others claim it is an old “way of life” when monuments & headstones were not available. Placing stones upon the graves of loved ones by visitors built up the “monument”  or “marker”. Others claim the more stones, the more visitors, the more one was loved & is missed. …

Hill Country Limestone, out of Austin, TX,  (I found on my favorite site… Etsy.com) offers a few new options for your “remembrance stone” that I just had to share! Give them a peek! They are pretty cool!

 

Congratulations To My Friend!

CONGRATULATIONS  to my friend Jennifer over at Climbing My Family Tree: One Branch At A Time. What a great honor to be in the top 40! You deserve it girl! Keep yup the great work!

Congrats to everyone who made their list! http://familytreemagazine.com/article/40-best-genealogy-blogs-2011

Fun Friday: 52 Weeks Of Personal Genealogy & History – Week 9 (Sounds)

Ok, Let’s face it… I hate being behind or late .. and I love games! So Geneabloggers has a fun little aid in helping you work on your personal story… So here I go:

http://www.geneabloggers.com/tag/52-weeks-of-personal-genealogy-history/

“Week 9: Sounds. Describe any sounds that take you back to your childhood. These could be familiar songs, jingles, children playing, or something entirely different.

This challenge runs from Saturday, February 26, 2011 through Friday, March 4, 2011.”

HA! I am pretty sure I need to be older to find sounds that remind me of my childhood… Sounds? Were there sounds in my childhood… I remember a lot of LOUD voices, because we are a rowdy bunch… but sounds… Hmmm… (a moment of silence)

“Jingle bells, JIngle Bells, Jingle All The Way, Oh What Fun It Is To Ride In A One Horse Open Sleigh…”

JINGLE BELLS! From the sound of them rattling to the song itself. I can’t carry a tune in a bucket & I come by this honestly. But Grands & I used to sing Jingle Bells while recording it to cassette tape in her kitchen. It was her way to distract me while she cooked & cleaned. I still have that cassette tape out in storage, even though it has unwound itself & can’t be fixed.

And jingle bells on my stockings. My mom made us all matching traditional red felt stocking with the big white fur cuffs & … jingle bells. I love hearing them “jingle” during the holidays. My mom has even made my new family (hubby & child) matching ones because I couldn’t part with mine even in my adult life. Every year we got an orange, a candy cane, & a new toothbrush!

Christmas had to be my favorite season. We were so poor growing up that it was never about the gifts, but the love, warmth & the efforts of giving in honor of Christ. We always “made” our christmas from the strung popcorn garland to the cards we mailed out. And to this day… I still carry on the tradition of “making” my Christmas. Jingle Bells are absolutely part of it all!